Letter from the President
Dear Friends,
On the lawn of the Dominican House of
Studies, directly in front of our academic
center, is a statue of St. Dominic, founder
of our Order. At his feet is a dog holding a
flaming torch in its mouth. What does the
dog have to do with St. Dominic, you might
wonder? In Dominican tradition, his mother,
Bl. Jane of Aza, had a dream while pregnant
that her son would one day run throughout
the world illumining it with light, like a
dog with a torch in its mouth. This dream
certainly proved true as Dominic discovered
a call to found an Order of Preachers at a
time when many Christians in Europe were
falling prey to heresy. From our foundation,
we Dominicans, or Domini canes (dogs of the
Lord) have been proclaiming the Truth of
the Gospel far and wide, setting hearts and
minds ablaze with the light of Christ.
As a contemporary example, in this issue
of Faith and Reason you’ll read about a
surprising encounter and preaching
moment experienced by Fr. Dominic Legge,
O.P., theology professor and Assistant
Director of our Thomistic Institute.
Fr. Legge was attending the University
of Notre Dame’s Tocqueville Program on
religion and public life. There, author Rod
Dreher of The American Conservative
witnessed what he called a “thrilling”
conversation between Fr. Legge and an
atheist student. Dreher sees it as a sign of
hope that students, Christian and otherwise,
would want to have a serious engagement
with the Catholic intellectual tradition.
Because of the rigorous theological
formation we provide, our professors as
well as the students we are educating are
Faith & Reason - Volume V, Issue I
able to address the intellectually probing
questions of young and old alike in our
contemporary culture.
You’ll also be introduced in this issue to
supporters Stephen and Maryanne Means.
They have become dedicated participants in
our mission because they see the Dominicans
playing an ever-increasing role in being
bearers of light to the world. Through
the Dominican charism of preaching and
teaching, the light of Faith, expressed
through reason, is shared with thousands
who might otherwise never encounter the
saving message of the Gospel. I’m so grateful
for the Meanses and indeed for all our
supporters, who make possible this essential
work of the Church!
Passing on to our students the strong
intellectual tradition of St. Thomas Aquinas
and the Church so that they may then share
this light to answer contemporary questions
—this is our mission at the Pontifical Faculty.
Thank you for your support as together we
participate in the New Evangelization, and
continue the work of St. Dominic to bring
the light of Christ to the world!
Fr. John Langlois, O.P.
President
Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception
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